1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power module for use in a marine vessel which is mounted on a deck of the marine vessel, and more particularly to a power module for use in a marine vessel which makes use of wind power and solar energy for propelling a marine vessel using sails, and a wind-propelled vessel provided with the power module for use in a marine vessel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a marine vessel, particularly, a large-sized marine vessel such as a bulk carrier consumes a large amount of fossil fuel and hence, the vessel is considered as one of main sources discharging carbon dioxide and air pollution.
As a means for preventing the consumption of a large amount of fossil fuel and reducing air pollution by such a large marine vessel, there has been known a large-sized wind-propelled vessel which the University of Tokyo developed recently. This large-sized wind-propelled vessel is configured such that a plurality of gigantic sails are installed on a deck, and a propelling force is obtained by controlling the respective sails by a computer. These sails are vertically extensible and retractable such that the sails are extended so as to fully make use of wind power when the marine vessel is propelled and the sails are retracted so as to prevent the wind from affecting the sails as much as possible when the marine vessel is not propelled or the like.
On the other hand, British patent 2234723 (patent literature 1) discloses a small-sized marine vessel which makes use of solar energy. The small-sized marine vessel is configured such that a plurality of sails are raised or lowered on a frame which is transversely mounted on a hull, and solar power generation panel is mounted on each sail. By raising or lowering the sails, the sails can be extended so as to fully make use of wind power when the marine vessel is propelled, and the sails can be folded in a horizontal state for preventing the influence of wind power exerted on the vessel when the marine vessel is not propelled as much as possible.